What Kind of Tree Are You?

Two hours later, the Tree Demon army finally stopped, halting once again by a stream—for Tree Demons, they could lack anything but water.

And the reason they stopped wasn't because they felt safe, but rather—

"Rustle rustle~ (Can't run anymore.)"

"Rustle~ (Didn't sleep enough, not running.)"

"Rustle rustle~ (Die if we must, what tree has lived forever in this life?)"

Ji Ruo, who could understand them: "..."

These guys had started slacking off.

They greeted each other, promising to be brothers in the next life.

Ji Ruo and Liang Shixian worked together to set the Tree Demon they'd been carrying back onto its original stump—that one, likely due to missing a large part of its trunk, was quite light and much faster than the other Tree Demons.

Once the Tree Demon returned to its place, it kept thanking Ji Ruo and the other profusely, its wildly dancing branches and rustling canopy making Liang Shixian a bit worried that this Tree Demon might have realized they weren't Tree Demons and was about to attack.

The other Tree Demons, noticing that this one—which should have been left to die in place—had actually followed, gathered around, shaking their branches in amazement.

Liang Shixian was on high alert, gripping the small wooden stick in his hand—unlike Ji Ruo, who still carried the weapon he'd taken at the start of the Martial Exam, Liang Shixian's weapon had been lost during the earlier large-scale terrain shift.

Ji Ruo, however, wasn't tense. Since he could understand the Tree Demons' conversation, he knew they were just huddling together to exchange final words and chat about everyday matters.

He cheerfully chimed in from time to time, genuinely treating himself as a member of the Tree Demon family.

Just then, the Tree Demon Leader approached, its thick trunk and massive canopy casting a shadow that enveloped both Liang Shixian and Ji Ruo. A branch laden with countless green leaves slowly extended toward them.

Liang Shixian's heart tightened, and he grabbed Ji Ruo to run, but Ji Ruo didn't budge.

"Don't panic, class monitor," Ji Ruo said cheerfully.

The Tree Demon Leader's branch swayed gently: "Rustle rustle~ (Thanks to you two brothers. Back then, things were urgent, and we couldn't look after that brother. Thinking about it now, I'm a bit ashamed.)"

"No need to thank us, it's only right, hehe," Ji Ruo said with a smile.

The Tree Demon Leader continued: "Rustle rustle rustle~ (By the way, you two never answered my question from yesterday. What kind of trees are you? Our Tree Demon clan doesn't reject new members, but I really can't tell what trees you are.)"

Ji Ruo pondered for a moment, then said, "Leader, we're Fertilizer Trees."

The Tree Demon Leader's branch stiffened noticeably: "Rustle~ (Fertilizer Trees? What kind of tree is that?)"

Ji Ruo explained, "I don't know how to put it exactly, but basically, we can produce fertilizer. Let me show you."

With that, to add credibility, Ji Ruo ran over to the Tree Demon Leader's roots and let loose.

"Drip, drip~"

Liang Shixian: "???"

You've got some serious guts!

Peeing at a Tree Demon's roots?!

The Tree Demon Leader felt the nutrients suddenly absorbed by its roots and was instantly shocked: "Rustle~ (Holy crap!)"

It couldn't see the exact scene, but in its vague perception, those nutrients were indeed released by Ji Ruo—truly a Fertilizer Tree! Who knew such a miraculous tree species existed in this world!

Ji Ruo thought for a moment and said, "Leader, we can digest harmless spirit fruits and the flesh of ordinary edible Monster Beasts, and after a while, convert those into fertilizer for our Tree Demon kin to grow. The conversion rate is just a bit low."

The Tree Demons marveled: "Rustle~ (A Divine Tree!)"

Ji Ruo gave a thumbs-up and said, "That's right! We two are exactly the Divine Trees that every Tree Demon clan needs for home and travel!"

The Tree Demon Leader: "Rustle rustle~ (You say you can digest harmless spirit fruits and some Monster Beast flesh, and turn them into fertilizer?)"

Ji Ruo: "Exactly!"

Suddenly, the wind hadn't stopped, but the trees went still.

For a moment, not a single Tree Demon shook its branches!

Liang Shixian stared at these Tree Demons nervously. In this conversation, he could only understand Ji Ruo's words, not the Tree Demons' language.

So he had no idea what was going on, or why the Tree Demons had all suddenly frozen.

Then—

One Tree Demon inexplicably extended a branch bearing spirit fruits right in front of Liang Shixian.

"Rustle rustle~ (Digest! Digest! Please, brother, give me something fresh and warm!)"

Liang Shixian couldn't understand, but that didn't stop him from being dumbfounded.

And this Tree Demon's action seemed like a signal—more and more Tree Demons stretched out their branches, shoving them right in front of the two, as if offering them food.

"Ji Ruo, this—"

Liang Shixian was genuinely bewildered.

Ji Ruo didn't explain much either. Happily picking a spirit fruit, he said, "Eat up, why are you just standing there? Remember, when you need to relieve yourself later, don't go too far—let our Tree Demon brothers have something fresh and warm!"

At first, Ji Ruo hadn't expected that he would unlock a new symbiotic relationship for the Tree Demons.

After a moment's thought, Ji Ruo said to the Tree Demon Leader, "Leader, digesting spirit fruits only produces that kind of fertilizer. We can also produce another type of fertilizer with stronger nutrients, but it requires Monster Beast flesh."

[Diplomatic Spokesperson] + [Camouflage] + [Immersion Effect] produced an absolutely terrifying result.

Coupled with Ji Ruo's live demonstration and the fact that these tree demons didn't even have visible sensory organs, under the combination of these conditions, not a single tree demon doubted it.

The Tree Demon Leader shook its canopy: "Rustle rustle rustle~ (Brothers, did you hear that! Move out, let's eat our fill before we die!)"

The terrifying demonic aura and fiendish energy still lingered, and the tree demons had no idea what the actual situation was, nor could they muster any thought of resistance.

But that didn't stop them from wanting to have some fun.

These weren't contradictory.

In an instant, roots surged beneath the tree demons, dense branches and vines spread in all directions, wildly attacking low-tier Monster Beasts fleeing past them.

The Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Secret Realm had fallen into chaos due to the terrifying demonic and fiendish aura from the mountaintop, but the tree demons had started a carnival within that chaos.

Some tree demons even stretched their branches into the stream, grabbing fish after fish.

They caught Monster Beasts, they caught fiends.

They strictly remembered Ji Ruo's requirement—'Monster Beast flesh edible for ordinary beings'—so some fiends, once caught, were casually discarded like trash, since they couldn't be converted by the Fertilizer Tree anyway.

Those discarded fiends cast a terrified glance at the tree demons caught in some kind of frenzy, then turned and fled.

A moment later, Liang Shixian stared at the massive number of Monster Beasts bound and suspended by branches and vines before him, utterly shaken.

Those Monster Beasts were still alive, not yet killed by the tree demons, struggling fiercely.

But these low-tier Monster Beasts, already frightened out of their wits by the demonic and fiendish aura from the mountaintop, couldn't break free at all.

Ji Ruo cheerfully directed: "That's right, just like that, everyone line up, one by one. The Monster Beasts have to be alive, so we can 'digest' them more easily. Don't rush, every Fertilizer Tree gets a share!"

The reason they needed them alive was that Ji Ruo and the others couldn't eat this much all at once. There was no preservation method in Ten Thousand Beast Mountain, and Monster Beast meat would spoil if left too long.

Then Ji Ruo turned to Liang Shixian and said, "Class monitor, come help out. We're having a feast today!"

Liang Shixian stared blankly as Ji Ruo began slaughtering beasts, skinning them, and cutting meat, his urge to complain surging uncontrollably.

The vibe of this Martial Exam was getting more and more abnormal!

"Class monitor, what are you doing? Don't just stand there!" Ji Ruo urged when he saw Liang Shixian frozen in place.

Liang Shixian took a deep breath. He wanted to tell Ji Ruo not to be so reckless, but what came out was— "Coming, coming! Should we marinate this meat first?"